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after there being the most amount of rain i have ever seen in a month i decided it would be a good time to go see a movie...and this was Castaway. I can’t exactly put into words what I “was expecting” but this movie left me in awe. To be quite honest I am not a big TOM HANKS fan, but after this movie he does have more respect from me than he had in the past. The cast was a small one to say the least and in my opinion the characters were excellent. The Main Cast: Tom Hanks is Chuck Noland Helen Hunt is Kelly Frears Wilson is a Wilson volleyball Cast Away begins arund the Christmas Holidays with Chuck and his love interest Kelly. Chuck is a workaholic FedEx Systems Engineer who travels around the world to help troubleshoot problems with FedEx distribution centers. Chuck is often paged in the most inappropriate times in life, but his job calls so he has to leave Kelly behind. When he is paged there is little time to organize things and say the “good byes” but Chuck and Kelly make do. Memphis, Tennessee is the place that this couple calls home. Chuck and Kelly were at a family Christmas gathering joking about a bet the two had made on how long it would take for family members to inquire when they were getting married if ever. At this point I do believe this is my family when it comes to my family being all nosey and concerned with my life and me. Within a few seconds of Kelly winning the bet Chuck’s pager goes off in the middle of the dinner. Could the timing have been any worse since they hadn’t even exchanged presents yet? On the way to the FedEx distribution center they exchange presents and Chuck gives Kelly the worst gifts in the world. Kelly reassures him that she loves the gifts even though she is lying through her teeth. Kelly gave Chuck a perfect gift which was her grandfather’s. The gift was a pocket watch with her picture in it. It just so happens that the picture she placed in it was naturally his favorite. He sets the time to Memphis time but renames it "Kelly Time". He hops out of their black, Jeep Cherokee kisses her goodbye and tells her that he will be right back. She hollers that she needs the keys, so he turns around and comes back and hands over the keys along with a small wrapped jewelry box. He tells her that she can hold onto it until New Year’s Eve when he is to be back and then she can open it then, since this is not the way he had “this planned”. Chuck gets on his charter plane as scheduled and takes a brief nap when he wakes up abruptly. After a few minutes he realizes the plane may be going down. After he straps himself in tight by his seatbelt he realizes the pocket watch is on the floor. He quickly goes after it, which wasn’t the smartest thing to do at this point. Luckily he grabs it but he can’t reach his life vest. So the other life saving devices will just have to do. The plane goes down after failed attempts to radio for help and failed attempts to keep the plane in the air. The plane bursts into a zillion pieces along with the five-man crew that was onboard. Chuck manages to get his life boat opened and narrowingly escaped the propelling debris and fire from the crash. It is a miracle he stayed on his tiny lifeboat thru a terrible storm that was raging in the water. Lightening filled the sky as the rain poured down on him at an alarmingly fast pace. Chuck was holding on for dear life. In his mind you could tell that he didn’t think was in shock and extremely frightened. Who wouldn’t be, if in this situation? The yellow lifeboat finally make it to land and Chuck realizes that he might actually be alive. Keep in mind this is the middle of the night in a horrible storm and he is still in shock. He yells hello and for help. He was hoping that the island in which he was now occupying was an island that was po pulated with people. Unfortunately his journey now begins. Chuck is now faced with learning how to survive without everyday conveniences that he was used to. He would have to find water, food, and create a place for him to sleep. These tasks were extremely difficult for him to do and his body became bruised, bloodied, and extremely cut up by various accidents. At this point in my mind I was trying to imagine how I would survive if I were the one on this island. And in all honestly I wouldn’t have made it very long at all. During the day Chuck noticed a few FEDEX packages that had washed up on shore. He then gathered them up and sorted them as if he was going to ship them to their destination. He didn’t open the packages until he finally got tired of eating coconuts and realized that he wasn’t going to be rescued as soon as he had hoped. He opened all the packages that have washed up on the shore but one. The most significant package was a volleyball that was enroute to a grandson from his grandpa before the crash. Chuck named the volleyball Wilson which was rather appropriate and it did get a chuckle out of the serious audience that surrounded Brandon and myself. Chuck was scouring the island from top to bottom to make sure there was no civilization on the island and was in search of some food other than coconut. On this particular journey to the highest part of the island he looks down and sees what appears to be a body just right off the sandy beach. He rushes to the rescue to find out that it was Stan one of the pilots from his plane crash. At this point I thought I was going to get sick. The body was just totally disgusting and I have an extremely weak stomach anyway. Chuck pulled him to shore and buried him after taking his shoes since he had no shoes to wear. He created a tombstone marking his existence and his grave. Chuck also found a flashlight that worked and it helped him explore a little bit through a ca ve that was on the island. The batteries finally gave out after he left the flashlight on while he was in the cave and fell asleep. His favorite use for the flashlight was to open the pocket watch and look at his beautiful Kelly. Wilson became Chuck’s lifeline, his best friend. Chuck held conversations with Wilson and it kept him sane. The two spent four long years stranded on the deserted island as strong companions. One day while asleep he awoke to this loud clanking noise and just dismissed it at first but the noise kept on. He finally got up and went to investigate with his spear. He was quite excited once he realized the object was made in the USA. The object was two sides of a port potty from the crash. At this point his he a brainstorm and uses this new object and some of the other objects from the packages to build a raft that would withstand the enormous waves surrounding the island. He knew that if he could make it past the waves that Wilson and he would have a chance of surviving and hopefully being rescued. The raft is built and he leaves his mark on rock engraved that he loves Kelly and that he was lost at sea for 1500 days. Wilson and Chuck set off on a voyage to hopefully succeed and make it past the waves… Was the movie worth my time and money? You better believe it. I will definitely be going back to see this movie again and possibly even buy it when it is released for home video. How long is the movie? The movie runs 143 minutes. Was there anything I didn’t like about the movie? I was extremely disappointed in the ending. But, if it had been any other way it would have gone against family values in some individual’s eyes. What was the point of this movie? Chuck was forced into a situation where he had nothing but time compared to his daily life where time was his enemy. He raced time and always had to try and beat it but rarely did. Chuck was alone by himself and forced to survive depending in him alone and no one else. This was an emotional and physical adventure that forever changed Chuck Noland’s life. Everything that had happened in the past four years had happened without him. He was assumed dead and no one had any idea he was alive. I am not going to spoil the end of the movie, so you will just have to go to the movie theatre and watch it for yourself and you will be amazed.

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For those who don't know Castaway 2000 was a programme made by the BBC about 36 Volunteers who had agreed to live on an island in the Hebrides for a year. The programme followed the progress and the tensions on the island, highlighting issues like the decision making process of the community, group dynamics, the roles that people assumed etc. In many ways they had agreed to take part in a sociological experiment and agreed that the BBC could film it. In many ways Castaway 2000 was an "artificial environment" and yet at the same time it is real life. Let me explain what I mean about an artificial environment. The castaway community unlike a normal community was created by a group of programme makers. I am quite sure that the makers of the programme were well aware that the variety of backgrounds and life experiences would make good viewing and that there would be personality clashes. In real life we can choose who we associate with. The choice was limited on the island. Interpersonal relationships therefore take on a different dynamic. In some ways it can like a greenhouse effect - it blossoms and flourishes a lot quicker, because you see one another more often, on both good and bad moments. My own experience: Twice in my life I have taken a gap year (or at least 6 months) to volunteer. In each case I have shared accommodation with my work colleagues. In both cases my colleagues have come from a variety of nations, social, economic and cultural backgrounds. Like the castaway programme I formed close friendships (which have lasted years.) but likewise there were tensions with others. I am glad that my experience was not filmed for all to see! In my opinion, the castaway volunteers are very brave. The last year has been real life to them and their life has been viewed by many and no doubt scrutinized........ But it doesn't stop there. A follow-up on how the castaways settle back into normal life is now underway.

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a really good idea by the bbc but they diddnt really make the most of it did they. There were only three mini series throughout the year. Big brother made a fortune and it ony ran for a couple of months. It was hard to find out how the social experiment was going throuout the year. But it was a very interesting project - not somthing that can be done again. It would be nice to see a full rerun of the programs again over a week to see the fuller picture. Does any one know what will happen to tarrensay now?

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For those of you who don’t know, Castaway 2000 has been about 36 ordinary men, women and children who have spent a year on a remote Hebridean Island for one year. It however, has not been without incident. The first 2-3 months were traumatic for many individuals and poor planning by the production company. The weather was not a great help either. Once all 36 where aboard in February, the fun began. Over the year, the events have been followed through various departures and relationships, the good times and the bad times. It has really shown the community develop and made the viewer feel as if that they are there. In my opinion, the programs should have been at more regular intervals so not as long would have been spent on recaps at the beginning of each run, even if only an hours show a month. The wind down programs at Christmas and New Year were really fun to watch showing their last hours on the island. That has finished off the year in style. The community was made up of a wide cultural group. There were some who stole the limelight like Ben, Toby, Philly, Tammy etc. going out of their way to show island life. Those who led their lives as near to normal as possible like Peter, Colin, Pat, Liz etc. and those who never seemed to be on camera like Monica and Warren. All of them deserve a medal in some shape or form just for surviving! The kids were the true stars in my opinion. Without them, very little light heartedness would come through the politics. We have seen them grow in stature over the year and all should go on to great things from what they have learnt. Some will now struggle to get back into the ‘real’ world, the kid will struggle re-adjusting to school life in classes of 30, some will become celebrities as soon as they touch down onto the mainland. All however will have a sense of achievement and thei r life will never be like it was before Taransay. I only wish that I had been a part of it.

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Castaway 2000 started around a year ago in a blaze of publicity and controversy. Some people were excited at the idea, some complained at the cost to the liscense payer, but overall it seemed like a good idea. But here we are, a year later, things have changed and after the roaring success of Big Brother how does Castaway compare? Unfortunately, for the BBC, I'm afraid it hasn't lived up to expectations. There a number of reasons for this, some the fault of the BBC and others limitations of the design. First and foremost this show was supposed to about survival, a group of people literally cast away on an island. For the first few episodes this seemed to be the situation, as potential castaways were put through a number of grueling tasks in order to qualify. The truth is, however, that this was the biggest waste of time I have ever seen. The castaways live such a cosy life; people live every day in this country in worse conditions than they do. Forgive me if I was wrong, but I thought these people would have to build a community, grow or hunt all their food and basically be cut off from the outside world. Instead they each get cosy little bungalows built for them, hot water supplied from a wind generator and food shipped in every week for them. And then what happened, some people refused to live on the Island because their accomodation wasn't up to scratch, excuse me; but didn't you sign up to Castaway 2000? What do you expect, it wasn't called 'Go and live on a cosy Island and get fed for a year', if the worst thing thats going to happen is you have to share accomdation for a week or two then I would think you've got an easy life. Any problems, what you going to do? Sort them out between yourselves, no of course not; lets use the radio provided to call for help. Animals sick? Why just call the vet; its a well known fact all real life castaways are stranded close to a vets surgery. Castaway has become nothing more than Big Brother set on Island, albeit a much worse version. Rather than the fight for survival being first and foremost in the castaways minds, they simply squabble with one another. This proves to be by far the most interesting part of the show, the makers must be congratulated for getting a good mix of religons, kids, young adults, old men, homo and heterosexuals, drunkards and of course the odd weirdo. Don't blame me for stereotyping, the show speaks for itself. An overweight old bearded man complaining at the youngsters for drinking too much and not doing enough work, an overprotective doctor and the gay man being discriminated against. The definition of sterotype should become Castaway 2000. The second major problem with Castaway is its TV air time, or lack of it. Big Brother succeeded because it was on everyday, you got to know the characters. Every time I watch Castaway I see a new face, and yes it has been on a year. The shows have been concentrated in to around four periods throughout the year, yes it is nice to see alot of shows all in one go but you can't help but feel that a show even once a week would have sufficed. The BBC may have thought that there wouldn't have been enough happening to have a once a week show, but as Big Brother proved, the day to day life of people in these situation is enough to keep us coming back for more. Recently Castaway Diaries hotour screens, but with the project almost over its simply a case of too little too late. The show was an experiment, and has proved to be a slight success. However, when the cost of the project is taken in to consideration, the amount of prime time TC gained from it seems small. Pre Big Brother it was exciting, but post Big Brother it seemed very dated. Despit my somewhat negative attitude to the show I do still watch it, and intend to do so till the end.

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Everyone loved the idea of Castaway 2000 didn't they? The hype in the papers, the long-awaited first episode. And to tell you the truth I was well in with that spirit - I watched every single episode for the first few weeks - the auditioning process, the first steps onto Taransay... but all this time it was dawning on me what utter tosh this is. Fascinating it may be, infuriating for me it definitely is. 'Castaway'? With a huge crate of personal belongings enabling people to bring walkmans and gameboys - it's a hard life. Castaway on a desert island... living in designer pods that wouldn't look out of place on an Alpine meadow. But all that aside, are those people just not the most irritating people in the world? I watched the auditioning process thinking 'Oh no, he won't get in, he's so argumentative and aggressive' - and ooh surprise surprise, he's in there. 'She won't get in, she has a fit if her trousers get muddy' - oh onto the island she goes. What ARE these people? Where did they get them from? One woman was going to leave the island because they were being nasty to her dog - now that's sad. But so is being nasty to a dog - if you're trying to live alone on a remote Scottish island are you really the sort of person to turn your nose up at a bit of excrement? This life is easy - it's just subsistence that's all. They seem to be on the bluddy radio every other moment if something look's like it may go wrong. What this show should be about is survival, not petty bickering of middle-class fools. Air-conditioned pods? No, make your own fricking house out of sticks and stuff. Walkmans? Good grief. Basically, they've taken a great concept and diluted it drastically, then plugged in these various characters chosen purely on grounds of being good on TV ( contentious etc ) - it's a real shame. It could have been a really good show - but as it is I'd support a movement to get them all left there on the island. Heck, what would they do wh en their batteries run out?

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I think that I am biased about this show, due to the fact that Toby is in fact an old friend of mine, stop name dropping I hear you shout, but I like the show. In today?s society the voyeuristic or fly on wall type of show is very popular for no other reason that it is escapism. For those of you that have been on another planet this year Castaway 2000 is about a small number of people that have been isolated on an island in the Hebrides for a year. The aim is to see how a group of, in theory a cross section of society, interact with each other. The real reason any of us watch the show is to see which people are going to love, hate or leave each other and or the Island and so far the show hasn?t disappointed. People have left the Island for many reasons and Toby has even found some romance. The show starts again on Friday the 24th of November (on the BBC) and I am sure that it will be a ratings winner again.

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Castaway 2000 was an ambitious project from BBC. It sends 30 odd people are sent to Taransay, a remote Scottish Island. Since it started controversy has surrounded the whole project, there was the time where people left the Island because it wasn’t sufficient for them. There was moody Ray who left in dramatic circumstances, then there was Ron who couldn’t stand the Island and left in the summer, and the Careys left not so long ago because of they’re religious beliefs. You have to ask the question though, are they really Castaway, as we’ve seen, some people have made numerous trips back to the mainland to do shopping. Others have had bottles of Whisky and contraband brought to the Island. We have watched them all build a community, and we’ve especially watch them all quarrel, fight and argue. They have had to kill the animals for food, they have had to grow they’re own food – its been quite an eye opening series. The year is nearly over now and soon the Castaways will have to leave Taransey and return back to mainland Britain. The series is a definite must to watch, it’s very good and is great entertainment.

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When I first heard about this programme, I thought it sounded quite good - a group of people who don't know each other, stranded on a desert island. However, the perceived image in my mind was completely different to the BBC's idea of a castaway! When I hear the word "castaway" I think of people standed without any contact with the outside world. According to the BBC though, it is putting a group of 30 people on a "remote island" which happens to be only a few miles from the mainland as well as allowing them special days throughout the year to see their families. I mean, what a joke. How can you have castaways who are able to see their families every five minutes??? I understand that there are exceptions, such as when Tammy went to see her ill Mum, but that is it. If these people decide to stay away from their families for a year, then THEY SHOULD STAY AWAY FOR A YEAR!!! When the programme first began I quite liked it, but now I only watch it if there is absolutely nothing else on TV-I may even subject myself to something thoroughly boring such as "Delia Smiths How to Cook" (no offence to all you budding chefs out there)rather than Castaway 2000. I don't think that the BBC understands how by allowing the castatways to do non-castaway stuff such as visiting the mainland and families, viewers are just not interested. Do they really think that a bunch of moaners on a island who fight with each other all the time about pathetic stuff like "whos going to peel the potatoes" is going to keep the public amused??? I think not.

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This program was meant to be of people stranded on an island and life was meant to be really hard. The hardest problem they faced was deciding what to do with some puppies born on the island. Basically the people on taransay are looking forward to a dss year with minimal work and lots of publicity. Ben fancies himself which is quite sickening to watch.It was quite cool the first two or three minutes with the classy music however now I just watch it so that I can laugh at the different people having what they think to be manly fights but I veiw on the television as them having massive girly cat fights. Also the programme is really stupid because they sneak contraband alcohol in to the island and the BBC don't do anything to stop them. The BBC had a good idea in making it however they could have done it in some place like the north pole because there would have had an extreme of climate. They should also have had an electricfence so they could not run away. The best people on the island must be those scotish men who always get drunk.

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The idea of dropping a bunch of people on a remote island and letting them fend for themselves is great but sadly the programme hasn't quite lived up to my expectations. The main reason being that they haven't exactly had to fend for themselves with boats bring supplies including alcohol and cigarettes (I can't remember Robinson Crusoe having that luxury). Programmes like this bring out the best and worst in people, I think that's what makes them compulsive viewing. Yes it's great to see people helping each other and pulling together but once again, like Big Brother, it has also shown what a bunch of complaining, bickering, backstabbing and petty individuals these people have become. Quite a few of the castaways have left the island, not because they found it hard or the life style too much but because they felt forced out by other members. Personally I think the group has split into three sections, the younger residents, the older residents and the ones that just can't or won't be allowed to fit in. I find it sad that as people we cannot accept others as they are and be more tolerant. My other big gripe is the BBC's scheduling. Why do we have a week of "Castaway" and then nothing for a couple of months? Why not have a weekly update, or is life on Taransey just so dull and boring that they need three months of film to make four half-hour episodes?

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When I first heard of Castaway 2000, I thought that it would be a great show. A Chance to see people in a community working together and living off the land. This however is not the case. There have been many things they have done which I have disagreed with; the subject of the shopping trip off the island is one that I feel strongly about. If this was a real situation they would not have been able to do this and I believe that there should be tighter rules against this sort of thing. Also the parcels they are receiving is another thing I disagree with; I know that they are not really castaway but they should at least try to follow the ideas and rules of the program. The castaways have lost one member of their community (Ray), and last night they lost yet another, when Ron decided he wanted off. Ron had lasted well over halfway and only had five months left. I think that the community will now relax more with each other and the religious family will be relived that he has gone. I did feel for the children, who had grown so fond of him and were crying as he left. Who will be next? Especially when their relatives come to see them. Will this cause some of the community to feel they wish to leave?

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So Ron is gone... The only questions is, what took him so long? It was always clear what a self-centred bully he was, which raises the question of 1) Why he wanted to go on the island in the first place, and 2) Why he was chosen to go to Taransay. The first question might always remain a mystery, since he clearly never had any desire to live in a community, adapt, tolerate or do anything that he didn't want to do (his comment about why he wouldn't help with planting potatoes says it all - 'why bother with all that work when you can buy a bag from Sainsbury's?'). The answer to the second question may well be far more sinister. It was clear from the very beginning during the selection process that Ron was not going to be willing to put himself out in any way, or do anything which he personally didn't fancy doing. So why on earth was he chosen if not in the hope that his attitude would inject some of the much needed tension that all TV docusoaps thrive on? Wouldn't it have been boring if everyone had liked each other and got on swimmingly. Call me cynical, but I really can't see any other reason why that man was there...

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Every generation has a hero, every religion a God, and so, every television show its golden boy or girl. On Big Brother, it was Mel ; she was beautiful, she was flirty, she was the one who did the kissing, and showed her bottom. Producers need someone like this in a show for the nation to get excited about, be it for love or hate, for the ratings it's essential, and it's where Castaway fails ; Sure, there's Toby & co. ll desperate for sex, and doing their best to get it, and there's Ben ; attractive, nice, very middle class, a bit wet, but very sweet ; Tanya is pretty, but moany, all have the potential, but there's just something missing ; It's boring. Nothing happens. They whinge, they fight, they accuse each other of normally unimportant misdemeanors, and it's just not fun to watch. Within ten minutes I was gazing at the TV glazed of eye as the nineteenth fight over puppies broke out, and they threatened to leave in their droves. I'm sure it seemed like an excellent idea in the planning, and it remains a fascinating sociological and psychological experiment. That doesn't make it good TV. Now, if they'd only get naked, cover themsleves in mud to make body prints, and start manipulating each other via secret notes I'd tune in........

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Since the first mention of Castaway 2000, we have enjoyed Channel 4's Shipwrecked and Big Brother, two smaller yet much more entertaining programmes of the same nature. These two examples of fine television making only help to show Castaway 2000 as the embarresing mess it really is. To me it seems the BBC have shot themselves in the foot with this project, taking what was good and (at the time) orignal idea and spoiling it with sloppy errors. Firstly, the seem to show the programme at random intervals during the year, with several weeks in between. Do the BBC really think they can hold our intrest like this? The programme takes it's self too seriously, and has been far too ambitous. Using a remote Scottish island suffering from weather conditions so bad that is actually prevents the project completion was poor planning on behalf of the BBC and makes bad viewing. No one on the island seems happy, perhaps because they are all extremists and have such opposing views. Did the BBC have to chosse a huge group of people from such wildly varying social backgrounds? I would image they would argue yes, because it would make for a more intresting social exspeariment, but I suspect they knew conflict would arise (and we love to watch people fight, don't we audience) and that is why those who were chossen were. This programme lacks everything the other two of the same ilk had - the wonderful settings of Shipwreked and the characters and audience interaction of Big Brother. Ultimatly, the poor planning of this project has turned it into a shambles that is no longer worth watching. A waste of a good idea, and a lot of money no doubt as well.